Wisdom poetry

Related to the heroic tales are a number of short poems from the Exeter Book which have come to be described as "Wisdom poetry". They are lyrical and Boethian in their description of the up and down fortunes of life. Gloomy in mood are The Ruin, which tells of the decay of a once glorious city of Roman Britain, and The Wanderer, in which an older man talks about an attack that happened in his youth, where his close friends and kin were all killed – memories of the slaughter have remained with him all his life. He questions the wisdom of the impetuous decision to engage a possibly superior fighting force: the wise man engages in warfare to preserve civil society, and must not rush into battle but seek out allies when the odds may be against him. This poet finds little glory in bravery for bravery's sake.

Hagiographies

Detailed and often fantastic descriptions of popular Christian saints’ lives.

Biblical paraphrases

The Junius manuscript contains three paraphrases of Old Testament texts. These were re-wordings of Biblical passages in Old English, not exact translations, but paraphrasing, sometimes into beautiful poetry in its own right. The first and longest is of Genesis. The second is of Exodus. The third is Daniel.

Christian poems

In addition to Biblical paraphrases there are a number of original religious poems, mostly lyrical (non-narrative).

Because Old English was one of the first vernacular languages to be written down, 19th century scholars searching for the roots of European "national culture" took special interest in studying Anglo-Saxon literature, and Old English became a regular part of university curriculum.

J.R.R. Tolkien is credited with creating a movement to look at Old English as a subject of literary theory in his seminal lecture Beowulf: The Monsters and the Critics.

Old English literature has had an influence on modern literature. Some of the most well known translations include William Morris' translation of Beowulf and Ezra Pound's translation of The Seafarer. The influence of the poetry can be seen in modern poets T. S. Eliot, Ezra Pound and W. H. Auden. Much of the subject matter and terminology of the heroic poetry can be seen in The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings and many others famous works of literature.

5. Material Culture and Everyday Life

5.1 Anglo-Saxon Art

Anglo-Saxon art covers the period from the time of King Alfred of Wessex (871-899), with the revival of English culture after the end of the Viking raids, to the early 12th century, when Romanesque art became the new movement. Prior to King Alfred there had been the Hiberno-Saxon culture (the fusion of Anglo-Saxon and Celtic techniques and motifs) which had ceased with the Vikings.

Anglo-Saxon art is mainly known today through illuminated manuscripts. It includes the Benedictional of St. Æthelwold manuscript, which drew on Hiberno-Saxon art, Carolingian art and Byzantine art for style and iconography. It contains the various pontifical blessings used during mass on the differing days of the ecclesiastical year along with a form for blessing the candles used during the Feast of the Purification. The manuscript was written by the monk Godeman at the request of Æthelwold, Bishop of Winchester.

Manuscripts were not the only Anglo-Saxon art form, although they are the most numerous to have survived. Perhaps the best known piece of Anglo-Saxon art is the Bayeux Tapestry which was commissioned by a Norman patron from English artists working in the traditional Anglo-Saxon style. Anglo-Saxon artists also worked in fresco, ivory, stone carving, metalwork and enamel, but few of these pieces have survived.